National password security awareness campaign
Stolen user data is often at the beginning of a cyber attack. A lot of damage can be prevented with strong passwords. The National Cyber Security Center (NCSC), the Swiss Crime Prevention (SCP) and the cantonal and municipal police corps are conducting a national password security awareness campaign in May with the support of the Internet Security Platform iBarry and "eBanking - but secure!" (EBAS) are conducting a national awareness campaign on password security.
A strong password must be at least twelve characters long and contain both lowercase and uppercase letters, special characters as well as numbers. In addition, the password must not appear in any dictionary. Such passwords are difficult to remember. Especially if, as recommended, a separate password is used for each application. Therefore, passwords like "hello" or "123456" are still among the most commonly used passwords in Switzerland. Weak passwords like these make it easy for cybercriminals to hack user data and misuse it for illegal purposes. With the current campaign, the security authorities and their partner organizations point out the dangers of weak passwords and show how you can optimally protect your access.
Technical means support cybersecurity
In order to create a strong password for every access and to manage the passwords securely, so-called password managers serve as helpful support. Users only have to remember one strong password, namely the password manager password. Security is supported by 2-factor or multifactor authentication. Here, in addition to the password, the knowledge factor, other factors such as biometric data, e.g., fingerprint or Face ID, are added.
National password security awareness campaign
Since May 1, the NCSC, the SKP and the cantonal and municipal police corps, with the support of iBarry and EBAS, have been raising awareness among the Swiss population about the importance of strong passwords. With tongue in cheek, it is made clear that simple passwords, moreover pinned on Post-its, are very tempting for cyber criminals. On the campaign website S-U-P-E-R.ch, learning videos provide further information. With the acquired knowledge and a little luck, one not only wins more cyber security, but also a competition prize. The campaign will run until May 31, 2023.
Source: Swiss Crime Prevention (www.skppsc.ch)
